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Marmolejo, 6,108 m, is the southernmost Six Thousand Metre Peak in the world. It is known among mountaineers for its long,
exhausting approach along the Marmolejo River (a tributary of the Maipo River) and for its scenic beauty that comes from its enormous
glacier and its sheer north face. It is on the border with Argentina and is a neighbour of the Nevado Piuquenes, even though the access
for the two mountains is through different valleys.
Marmolejo is a volcanic centre composed of a large caldera-type structure, generated by large eruptions that occurred no more than
two million years ago. The walls of its cone are more than 2,000 metres high. This is shown in its impressive north face that falls from
the summit itself. The bottom of the great couldron (which faces Argentina) is full of thick layers of ice that also reach the south and
south-east slopes of the mountain. |
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From Santiago, head towards the Cajón del Maipo on Ruta G-25
and continue until the San Gabriel border post, where you should
register your expedition.
From San Gabriel go about 30 km towards a gypsum mine works
and a settlement known as Lo Valdés (1,875 m). Continue about
five km on the road that leads to the Colina hot springs. After
crossing the bridge over the Colina River (2,300 m) there are some
cairns and a goat shed next to a hill known as “morro”. This is a
good place for leaving your vehicle.
From the goat shed, take the path that goes in a northerly direction
until reaching the valley known as La Engorda from where you can
see the San José Volcano. From this valley, continue for 6-8 hours
towards the north until you get to the end of the valley that follows
the Marmolejo River. The road is quite exhausting as it goes over very
loose rounded rocks that do not allow you to establish a good rhythm.
It is recommended to begin early in the morning following the path
on the west side of the river which will facilitate the crossing of the
Engorda River and the Marmolejo River itself which is done after 2
hours walk. BC can be set up on a small plateau in which it is possible
to find some cairns for protection from the wind (3,600 m). |
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From BC, you should start ascending along a ridge that stands out
due to its red colour. The ascent is exhausting and if the team is not
well-acclimatised it is recommendable to remain camped at BC an
additional night and spend the day taking equipment to the HC
(4,900 m). If you decide to climb straight to HC it takes approximately
nine hours. At the end of the ascent along this ridge you arrive at
a rocky area where you can set up HC and from where you can see
both the glacier and the summit of Marmolejo.
From the HC you cross a glacier that, depending on the season and
month, can be either flat or with penitentes that complicate the
advance. There are no obvious crevasses but, just as with every
glacier field, it is recommended to rope-up.
The slope from the HC until the end of the glacier is about 15º and
you should advance in an easterly direction towards the summit,
which always remains visible.
The final part requires you to climb on soft and sandy terrain and
then negotiate some areas of rocks, if the season in which you are
climbing is dry. It is recommended to protect yourself from the north
wind which can sometimes make the mountain a freezing challenge.
The summit of Marmolejo is very exposed to the wind and has little
standing room. You should pay special attention if there are gusts
of wind, as these can destabilize you and cause you to fall.
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• No special permits are required to climb Marmolejo but you should
inform the police in the San Gabriel station of your expedition,
giving them a letter showing participants, nationalities, passport
or ID numbers, details of activities and specific itineraries, dates,
route and a map of the area. As the mountain is on the border,
foreigners require permission from DIFROL (www.difrol.cl).
• The best transport option is to take a 4x4 vehicle. See appendix
for recommendations.
• It is recommended to take equipment and clothing suitable for
high altitude mountaineering. As part of the equipment it is
recommended to take snow and ice anchors and rescue equipment,
ropes, harness, ice axe and crampons.
• It is recommended to take mules to transport the equipment
during the approach and the return journey. The Martínez family,
in San Gabriel, offers this service. As a second option you can
look in Baños Morales, where some other muleteers live.
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